Tuesday, 5 April 2016

It's a Long Story...

I think I'd better explain how I've come to be writing this blog.

Regular readers of 270KTA.co.uk will know that my irrational love of the Bristol SU-type gets me into all sorts of trouble. Having helped to restore the SUL coach owned by my family since 1993, I bought another one of my own in 2009 and have spent nearly seven wonderful but calamitous years trying to tame it. Here I am in 2016 having bought yet another one to restore, this time an SUL bus.

(Read a quick lesson on the differences between buses and coaches here.)

In this first post, I explain how the obsession began, despite the SU having long since finished in service by the time I was born. The SU coaches entered my consciousness by accident, at bus rallies and road runs, their pleasing lines and smiling 'faces' doing their own work to charm a schoolboy with a weakness for such things. The SU buses had to work a little harder to get themselves noticed, but only because there were very few in active preservation at that time.

I'd seen them in books (he says, like an adolescent schoolboy describing how he'd first encountered the opposite sex). My Dad thought they were ugly, but I liked the look of them. Small and quaint, they had the same mischievous look as the coaches. And, like the coaches, they had a habit of lurking around in the background, puncturing the grandeur of the bigger, more purposeful buses.

The first SU bus I actually saw was this one, a long-term, decaying resident at the yard of W. Norths of Sherburn-in-Elmet (who also played a significant role in 671's continued existence, as you'll read in the potted history to the right).

My Dad and I visited Norths a few times when I was 8 or 9 to find spares for our Bristol Lodekka. The SU was Western National 634 (348 EDV), although by the time I saw it there was nothing left to identify it. 634 was an instant hit with me, not just because it was an SU but also because it had no remaining steering mechanism which meant the steering wheel could be turned round and round with next to no effort. This was a vital feature for a nine year-old aspiring bus driver.

I soon met (and drew) the SU buses at Colin Billington's place in Berkshire, as well as Trevor & Shirley Leach's beautiful red West Yorkshire example - by which stage it was too late to stop the growth of what has been an ambition ever since: to own one.

The first I knew of BDV 252C (671) was this photograph. I bought this quite soon after I started collecting photos of SUs (as an addict would) in the early 1990s and was excited to see there was still a Western National SUL bus in a good state of repair.

A little investigation showed it was privately preserved in the North of England by a father and son team, Dennis and Dave Say of Yokefleet, assisted by Dave's future wife Christine and, later, Dennis's partner Margaret. I collected many other photos of it whenever they turned up, both in service and in preservation, the latter always showing it turned out well and confirming it was in safe hands.

Dave Say has very kindly shared with me some tales of their time with "the happy bus", as 671 was known, and I'll be posting these in due course as a tribute to the vast contribution the Says made to 671's survival.

All went quiet from 671 in the early 2000s when it was sold on to a truck enthusiast who required a bus to ferry his friends to shows. The new owner wasn't actively engaged with bus preservation so 671 quietly disappeared from the scene and we interested parties all lost track of its whereabouts.

Concern was mounting for its continued existence until, in around 2012, it emerged looking like this...

... a far cry from its cup-winning days with the Says. There was concern for its future among enthusiasts as it passed between short-term owners, deteriorating further each time. 671 had become an emergency.

Twice before I've narrowly missed out on buying 671. On both occasions it was sold
for quite an excessive price given the amount of work required for the
restoration. First time it moved to Bath, where the owner promptly listed it for sale on
eBay, a dangerous marketplace for historic vehicles. Despite a realistic but
generous offer from me, it was sold again to a new owner in Somerset.

Having
established contact, I was kindly given first refusal when the time came to
sell 671 - and after the anguish of missing out twice in recent years, I didn't
dally around!

The sale was agreed on 13th (oh gawd) January 2016 and, after a preparatory visit to bleed the clutch and reattach the prop-shaft, we collected my prize by low-loader on 4 February 2016, my long-suffering Dad at the wheel quoting the Laurel & Hardy phrase "Another fine mess you've got me into"...

Highlights of a memorable but smooth journey 'home' can be enjoyed in the video below.

Now safely home, the scale of the restoration task can be easily assessed. It is huge, though I'm surprisingly undaunted. That's not because I'm either naive or arrogant (our other vehicles kicked any last vestiges of those traits out of me years ago) but this time I want to take my time. I'm lucky enough to have other buses I can drive in the meantime so, unlike previous projects, I'm under no immediate pressure to have 671 on the road.

Instead, the priority is to enjoy the restoration and do a thorough job over the next few years. Whatever horrors we find - and, trust me, there will be some, if not many - we'll deal with them gradually and watch as it slowly comes back to life.

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This blog is an ongoing chronicle of the restoration of my 1965 Bristol SUL4A bus.

Here you'll find regular updates on the project and historical info about the bus and its type. If you've ever fancied a restoration project of your own, but don't welcome the expense and strife that comes with it, pop back as often as you like and virtually share in mine.

The restoration will be a thorough process, covering all aspects of the vehicle, so please don't expect a quick result. Instead, you can look forward to a long series of temporary defeats and small victories that hopefully balance in our favour overall and take us ever closer to a result.

This blog is a 'brother' to the long-established 270KTA.co.uk, which follows the adventures of my 1962 Bristol SU coach, brought back to life from a similar state. To balance the woes and elations in each story, I recommend you follow the two in equal measure!

David Sheppard, 2017

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About BDV 252C

BDV 252C (671) is a 1965 Bristol SUL4A saloon, one of 81 such buses built for Western National and Southern National between 1960 and 1966. It is the sole survivor of its batch but is typical of the later SU buses which were so much a part of West Country life for decades.

Bristol's SU-type was a narrow, lightweight chassis designed specifically for use in rural areas. As well as the South West, they found their way to Yorkshire, the Isle of Wight and parts of the Home Counties, albeit in smaller numbers.

671 has a 36-seat body built by Eastern Coachworks of Lowestoft and a 4-cylinder Albion EN250H diesel engine, mounted horizontally underfloor and coupled to a David Brown 5-speed gearbox.

A Brief History

671 spent its entire working life at Western National's Minehead depot, where it was delivered new in March 1965. As well as local Somerset routes, it was a regular performer on Service 260 across the Devon border to Lynton and Lynmouth. As such it would have made thrice-daily journeys up and down the infamous 1 in 4 Porlock Hill!

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Originally operated by a driver/conductor crew, it was adapted for driver-only "Pay as you enter" operation in 1967, with the addition of a driver's cab door and fare taking equipment.

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Repainted into National Bus Company corporate green and white in the early 70s, it remained true to its Minehead stamping ground until withdrawal in August 1978.

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From Western National, 671 passed through the hands of two famous bus dealers, the first being Reverend Green of Weymouth, a practising vicar who also bought and sold buses in surprising quantities! From him, 671 passed to W. Norths of Sherbern-in-Elmet, Yorkshire, where it was one of several SULs inspected for potential use by Northfield Middle School of Thorne near Doncaster. (Photo: Keith W. Platt)

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The school repainted 671 to an approximate version of its original livery and it was used extensively on school outings and field trips. It was replaced by a Bedford coach in 1984, and sold to a market trader in Rawcliffe Bridge, Yorkshire. He used the bus as a mobile sewing workshop, travelling the local area to make clothing alterations. (Photo: Keith W. Platt)

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671 was rescued for preservation by Dennis and Dave Say at the end of 1984, a father and son team who ensured its survival for the next twenty years. Under their ownership it was presented to a high standard and used as a local community bus in Yorkshire, also regularly attending rallies at which it often won the cup.

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Following sale in 2004, it saw a long period of decline and very little love, with several changes in ownership in quick succession. Always stored outside, it deteriorated rapidly both externally and internally, with major water damage to seats and fittings. (Photo: Ken Jones)

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I finally bought 671 in January 2016, after many years of fearing for its future. It was low-loadered to its new home in South Devon in February for restoration to begin. Fortunately, 671 remains mostly complete and represents a good starting point for a thorough restoration - which is what you will read about here.

671 joins a family fleet of five preserved Bristol vehicles, including my own SUL coach which you can read about at www.270KTA.co.uk.

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BDV252C's Owner and Scribe

David Sheppard is 34 and lives in the South West of England. He has been involved in bus and coach preservation for more than 25 years, having helped his father to restore their first bus at the age of seven.

David is a trustee and director of the Thames Valley & Great Western Omnibus Trust and a director of NARTM, the National Association of Road Transport Museums, which represents the heritage transport movement to Government departments and agencies, regulators and funding bodies.

A broadcaster by trade, David currently presents a nightly show for BBC South West across their radio stations in the West of England and the Channel Islands.